Teemu Pulkkinen

Pulkkinen earned an NHL job right out of training camp last season, thanks in part to his reunion with bench boss Jeff Blashill, who had coached the Finn while he was with AHL Grand Rapids. Pulkkinen flat-out dazzled in the minors, highlighted by 65 goals and 55 assists in 117 regular-season games from 2013-2015. It didn’t stop there, as Pulkkinen notched an AHL-best 14 goals during the 2015 Calder Cup Playoffs. He’s incredibly crafty with a scoring touch, but detractors are quick to point out that his smallish frame – he’s 5-foot-11, 183 pounds – invites injuries. Case in point: Pulkkinen was limited to 36 NHL games last season, having sustained a serious shoulder injury in early December that required offseason surgery and could force him to miss up to the first two months of the upcoming campaign. His injury history is worrisome, but that risk can be mitigated by nabbing him at the back end of fantasy drafts this fall.

Pulkkinen is just the latest foreign forward to enjoy a meteoric rise through the Red Wings' system. After sniping 31 goals for AHL Grand Rapids in 2013-14, Pulkkinen did himself one better last season, potting a league-leading 34 tallies -- in just 46 games. That eye-popping production earned him his first call to the parent club, but Pulkkinen did little to distinguish himself in his 31 contests with the Red Wings, notching five goals and eight points. Don't put too much weight in that inauspicious debut, though, as the sample size was small and Pulkkinen was primarily stuck with limited minutes in a bottom-six role. It will be difficult for Pulkkinen to see top-six duty to open 2015-16, but expect 5-foot-11 offensive dynamo's scintillating skills to force the Red Wings to at least carve out more ice time for him than the 11:29 he averaged in 2014-15. It won't be enough for him to make a major fantasy impact right away, though if injuries thin the depth of the top two lines at some point, Pulkkinen could very well explode when the opportunity knocks. Remember the name.

Pulkkinen was one of the premier contributors for AHL Grand Rapids last season, scoring 31 goals and 28 assists in 71 regular season contests and potting another 11 points in 10 playoff games. He didn't do much in his three games with the Red Wings in 2013-14, but should get a shot at making the team in the fall.

After spending much of the 2012-13 season in Finland, Pulkkinen came to Grand Rapids just in time to put up five points in 14 playoff games in their Calder Cup run. The Red Wings are high on Pulkkinen but will probably give him another year or two in the AHL to get some experience in North America.